Verb tenses · Brazilian Portuguese

Portuguese Imperfect Subjunctive (Pretérito imperfeito do subjuntivo)

The imperfect subjunctive is the form for imagined situations and past wishes: se eu tivesse tempo (if I had time), queria que você viesse (I wanted you to come).

All about the subjunctive

Se eu tivesse dinheiro, viajaria mais. If I had money, I'd travel more.

Used in speech and writing
Level B1
Same in Portugal

-ar: -asse -asse -ássemos -assem
-er: -esse -esse -êssemos -essem
-ir: -isse -isse -íssemos -issem

When to use the imperfect subjunctive

After se, for something imagined or unlikely.
Se eu morasse mais perto, iria a pé para o trabalho.
If I lived closer, I'd walk to work.
Wanting or asking something of someone, in the past.
O chefe pediu que eu ficasse até mais tarde.
My boss asked me to stay later.
After para que, embora and other que-conjunctions, when the sentence is in the past.
Ela deixou a luz acesa para que as crianças não tivessem medo.
She left the light on so the kids wouldn't be scared.
After como se, “as if”.
Ele fala como se soubesse tudo.
He talks as if he knew everything.
Wishes about now that can't come true, with quem dera or queria que.
Quem dera eu pudesse dormir mais um pouco.
If only I could sleep a bit longer.

Often confused with the conditional and the present subjunctive.

Regular verbs

Every regular verb follows one of these three: -ar like falar (to speak), -er like comer (to eat), -ir like partir (to leave). The ending is in bold and underlined. Tu is used in parts of Brazil, and is shown last.

Regular verbs, Imperfeito do subjuntivo
Person	falar	comer	partir
eueu	falasse	comesse	partisse
vocêvocê, ele, ela, a gente	falasse	comesse	partisse
nósnós	falássemos	comêssemos	partíssemos
vocêsvocês, eles, elas	falassem	comessem	partissem
tuturegional	falasses	comesses	partisses

Irregular verbs

The most common irregular verbs in the imperfect subjunctive, most used first. Verbs built on the same one change the same way: learn ter and you know manter and obter. Irregular forms are marked (irregular).

estar
- euestivesse (irregular)
- vocêestivesse (irregular)
- nósestivéssemos (irregular)
- vocêsestivessem (irregular)
- tuestivesses (irregular)
ir
- eufosse (irregular)
- vocêfosse (irregular)
- nósfôssemos (irregular)
- vocêsfossem (irregular)
- tufosses (irregular)
ser
- eufosse (irregular)
- vocêfosse (irregular)
- nósfôssemos (irregular)
- vocêsfossem (irregular)
- tufosses (irregular)
ter
- eutivesse (irregular)
- vocêtivesse (irregular)
- nóstivéssemos (irregular)
- vocêstivessem (irregular)
- tutivesses (irregular)
Also: manter, obter and 7 more
poder
- eupudesse (irregular)
- vocêpudesse (irregular)
- nóspudéssemos (irregular)
- vocêspudessem (irregular)
- tupudesses (irregular)
fazer
- eufizesse (irregular)
- vocêfizesse (irregular)
- nósfizéssemos (irregular)
- vocêsfizessem (irregular)
- tufizesses (irregular)
Also: desfazer, satisfazer and 9 more
saber
- eusoubesse (irregular)
- vocêsoubesse (irregular)
- nóssoubéssemos (irregular)
- vocêssoubessem (irregular)
- tusoubesses (irregular)
querer
- euquisesse (irregular)
- vocêquisesse (irregular)
- nósquiséssemos (irregular)
- vocêsquisessem (irregular)
- tuquisesses (irregular)
Also: maisquerer, malquerer
dizer
- eudissesse (irregular)
- vocêdissesse (irregular)
- nósdisséssemos (irregular)
- vocêsdissessem (irregular)
- tudissesses (irregular)
Also: contradizer, bendizer and 4 more
ver
- euvisse (irregular)
- vocêvisse (irregular)
- nósvíssemos (irregular)
- vocêsvissem (irregular)
- tuvisses (irregular)
Also: prever, rever and 3 more
haver
- euhouvesse (irregular)
- vocêhouvesse (irregular)
- nóshouvéssemos (irregular)
- vocêshouvessem (irregular)
- tuhouvesses (irregular)
vir
- euviesse (irregular)
- vocêviesse (irregular)
- nósviéssemos (irregular)
- vocêsviessem (irregular)
- tuviesses (irregular)
Also: intervir, convir and 6 more

Any verb in the imperfect subjunctive

Type a verb

How Brazilians use it

Se eu pudesse, eu ia

In speech, Brazilians often put the imperfect in the other half instead of the conditional: se eu ganhasse na loteria, eu parava de trabalhar. Se eu pudesse, eu ia sounds natural; se eu pudesse, eu iria sounds more careful.

Se chover or se chovesse?

For something that may well happen, Brazilians use the future subjunctive: se chover, a gente fica em casa. The imperfect subjunctive makes it imagined or unlikely: se chovesse, a gente ficava em casa.

In Portugal

The imperfect subjunctive works the same way in Portugal.

Common mistakes

Not~~Se eu teria dinheiro, compraria um carro.~~
ButSe eu tivesse dinheiro, compraria um carro.
The se half takes the imperfect subjunctive; the conditional goes only in the other half.
Not~~Queria que você vem comigo.~~
ButQueria que você viesse comigo.
When the wish is in the past (queria, pedi, esperava), the verb after que goes in the imperfect subjunctive.
Not~~Se eu fazesse isso, ela ia ficar brava.~~
ButSe eu fizesse isso, ela ia ficar brava.
The form is built on the preterite (fizeram → fizesse), so irregular verbs keep their preterite stem: tivesse, fosse, estivesse, pudesse, quisesse, soubesse.

Trigger words

These words and phrases call for the imperfect subjunctive.

Trigger	Example
se	Se eu fosse você, eu aceitaria. If I were you, I'd accept.
como se	Ele dirige como se estivesse sozinho na rua. He drives as if he were alone on the road.
queria que	Queria que você estivesse aqui. I wish you were here.
quem dera	Quem dera eu tivesse férias agora. If only I had a vacation now.
pediu que	A professora pediu que a gente lesse o capítulo. The teacher asked us to read the chapter.
para que	Ele falou baixo para que o bebê não acordasse. He spoke quietly so the baby wouldn't wake up.
embora	Embora estivesse chovendo, a gente saiu. Although it was raining, we went out.
talvez	Talvez ela não soubesse que a reunião era hoje. Maybe she didn't know the meeting was today.

Practise the imperfect subjunctive

Ten questions on the most common verbs. Type the form; you'll see right or wrong at once.

Practise the imperfect subjunctive with every verb

Cheat sheet

The endings and the most common irregular verbs on one printable page.

Imperfect Subjunctive cheat sheet (PDF)

Questions

What is the imperfect subjunctive in Portuguese?

The pretérito imperfeito do subjuntivo is the form for imagined situations, “as if” and wishes in the past: se eu tivesse tempo (if I had time), como se fosse fácil (as if it were easy), queria que você viesse (I wanted you to come).

How do you form the imperfect subjunctive in Portuguese?

Take the eles form of the preterite, drop -ram and add -sse: falaram → falasse, comeram → comesse, partiram → partisse. The nós form has an accent (falássemos) and the eles form ends in -ssem (falassem). Irregular verbs follow their preterite: fizeram → fizesse, foram → fosse.

How do you say “if I were” in Portuguese?

Se eu fosse, the imperfect subjunctive of ser: se eu fosse você, eu iria (if I were you, I'd go). The same form serves for ir: se eu fosse ao Rio means “if I went to Rio”.

What is the difference between the imperfect subjunctive and the conditional in Portuguese?

They go in the two halves of an “if” sentence: the imperfect subjunctive after se (se eu pudesse), the conditional in the result (eu viajaria). In speech the result is often in the imperfect instead: eu viajava.

See the imperfect subjunctive in real books

Tables teach the forms; stories teach when to use them. Read Brazilian books and stories at your level, tap any verb for its meaning in that sentence, and press Listen to hear the page in a Brazilian voice.

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